I'm getting pretty good at reloads and getting the stove up to temp. On a hot reload I can achieve secondary burn and run the air almost closed almost right away. On a morning with coals from the load the night before, I have to use kindling to get the flue and firebox hot enough for full size splits. With time, I'm sure I'll get this down even faster. I've only had to perform a few match starts, but only because of a warm front and some stove pipe adjustment.
After the stove died down in the middle of the day I adjusted the stove pipe to have slight incline on the horizontal run. I read somewhere on here this is the correct way to install, but nobody at the stove store mentioned this. I also screwed the single wall into the flue collar now that I'm happy with the placement. I regret all of the scuffs, but I'll get some brush on touch up paint and fix it the next time it warms up a bit.
Every time I run the stove I'm always impressed by the efficiency and heat that comes out of this tiny stove. The firebox is just over .8 ft³, but thankfully I have plenty of 18" birch splits for "overnight burns" that were stacked in a shed when we got the house. I consider "burn time" to be the time between matchless reloads. Your experience may vary, but with the Eastern Hemlock and Red spruce, which make up 85% of my firewood, I can get 4+ hrs of meaningful heat. With the limited seasoned birch and ash I have on hand I can get 6+ hrs of meaningful heat, 8+ hrs between reloads. I know these are short for most wood burners on here, but given the tiny firebox I find it to be very commendable. We are also using 1/2 to 2/3 of the wood our giant old busted smoke dragon gobbled up. Soon I will be cleaning the chimney, I'm sure even just a month trying to limp the old stove has put a layer of flaky stuff on the clay chimney liner.
Our house is well insulated with 2x6 studs and 7 1/4" thick walls. Our windows are double pane, but from the 70's and not great shape. On sunny days we don't even need any heat, even our electric baseboard heaters set at 65 don't kick on. Our house was built with a very effective, if hideous, ducted passive solar wall and four sliding glass doors facing south. The house is a 1300 sqft salt box with two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs and an open downstairs.
For a house with less insulation or more interior walls, this might not be the right stove. We were a little nervous initially, but there were few alternatives that we liked. All doubts are behind us and we believe in the squirrel power! It also happens that a colony of red squirrels live near our house, but have never messed with the house.
The only thing about the stove I would consider a downside would be cold starts. The placement of the kindling and tinder is critical and a decent amount of embers must be present to start adding splits without bringing the stack temp down. If can be fiddly, but I'm getting the hang of it. The draft can be tricky from cold. The shape of the upper chamber does not help. I have cheated a few times with newspaper, but as my technique improves I have needed it less. Next winter I plan on installing double wall with two 45's. If we knew the benefits we would have just paid the extra cost up front, but now we know.
After a month or so I will make a new thread that is more comprehensive and focused, but this thread will also be updated. I couldn't find any reviews on this stove before I bought it, so I hope I can help others who are considering this stove!